Beat Panic, the iPhone app
Panic attacks, anxiety, generalised anxiety disorder, anxiety attacks, palpitations, etc. There are many different names for this awful condition. A condition that blights the life of thousands and thousands of people every day in this country alone. The symptoms vary but can include palpitations, pins and needles, a feeling that you cannot breathe, dizziness and sweating. The attacks can happen at any time and can be so debilitating that some people are completely disabled by them.
For me, the attacks started when I was 18 and they terrified me; I thought I was dying. I couldn't breathe, my vision went, I had chest pains, pins and needles and my heart was racing at more than 120 beats a minute. These attacks became so severe and occurred so often I lost 2 stone in weight. I was in such a state of permanent anxiety I couldn't eat. I was afraid to go out in case they happened in public. I felt I was in real danger of passing out and I was worried that I would make a fool of myself in some way or that I would come to some harm during one. I slept a great deal through the sheer exhaustion that would hit after each panic attack and spent weeks being unable to function at all. As I also suffered with health anxiety the one fed the other so this was a very bad time
For several decades I had many episodes like this; clusters of panic attacks over several months. Then I would improve slowly and eventually have periods of time without any attacks, sometimes these periods lasted 2 or 3 years, but then the attacks would start again. Some clusters came out of the blue, for no reason that I could fathom, others occurred at periods of great stress in my life. There was no real pattern and I felt utterly at the mercy of something over which I had no control. For years I struggled to get to the bottom of what was causing them and find ways to help treat them but never really found anything that was 100% effective. Medication helped a little, though the one that did most to help me is one that got a really bad press because of the side effects, including withdrawal effects. I have to say that I didn't have significant effects when taking it, but I did have some and, more importantly, I didn't want to spend most of my life on tablets so I came off them.
I rarely get panic attacks now. Having said that, a severe one that took me by surprise a couple of years ago, and a few minor ones last year, reminded me that I am not completely immune. I don't know why they are so few and far between now; possibly because I am aware of what happens to the body when they do happen and so have been able to nip them in the bud before they really take hold. When I first suffered from them there was very little in the public domain and my doctors didn't seem to know much about them. No one ever sat me down and told me what was happening during an attack. It was years before I understood about the fight/flight response and I was helped enormously when I met my partner, Anna, who is a mental health nurse. Don't get me wrong she never 'treated' me, she just helped me to understand what was happening. Once I did understand it it helped to limit the duration of the attacks and this seemed to help to prevent them also. I could rationalise what was happening and it made me realise that I was not dying, this helped with the health anxiety which in turn reduced the number of panic attacks and so on. It also helped that she was around to remind me that I wasn't going to die. This is great for me but I will never forget how these awful attacks used to terrify me, make my life a misery for months on end and prevent me from leaving my home. The impact on my life as a whole and the restrictions this placed on me became part of the thinking behind the development of an app.
During a panic attack many people feel self conscious and worried that people are looking at them. This can add to the stress and sometimes make the attacks last longer and be more severe. As you get worse it becomes more apparent to others that something is wrong, a red face, rapid breathing and sweating are just some of the more obvious symptoms. When that happens many suffererers tend to abandon whatever they are doing and rush home. Once home they can often feel a little safer and that, combined with the fact that the attack has probably run its course by now anyway, means these severe panic attacks become associated with being away from home. This often discourages people from going out again and creates a vicious circle. The less you go out the more you fear that going out will trigger a panic attack and the stress of that means you are more likely to have one.
Current thinking centres on self help and I know from my own experience how effective that is. A lot of this work is focussed on getting people to understand what is happening to them and to take steps to make small changes. There is a lot of reading material about that helps people to understand and they can refer to it when they need reassurance. The problem with that of course is that you cannot take self help books around you everywhere you go. Well I guess you can but they are not exactly discreet are they? Having to flick through the pages of a book, or flourish a sheaf of papers is something that may well draw attention and that is the last thing we sufferers want. A mobile phone however, is very different. We are all very used to seeing people with their noses buried in their phones. Reading something on the internet or even reading a book on your smartphone is quite easy to do discreetly. So the idea of our iPhone app was born.
The anxiety management principles used within the Beat Panic app are based on those used in Cognitive Behaviour Therapy:
To understand and normalise the physical symptoms
To identify and challenge negative thinking
To overcome the urge to flee; to learn to deal with the panic wherever it occurs
The app starts with calm soothing breaths to help you regulate your respiration, the screen breathes with you. This is designed to reduce hyperventilation and slow down the heart rate. This can bring down the adrenaline surge and release tension.
The subsequent text normalises your feelings and assists you in gaining control by focussing on the present and not what you fear may happen. It directs you away from negative/catastrophic thinking.
In a state of panic we fear something terrible is going to happen and dwell on the fear of "what if..." Focussing on the text is a form of distraction, keeping you in the here and now, telling you that you can deal with it. The aim is to remember what is really happening and guide you through the panic. It directs you to identify a calm word that you can say to yourself in a repetitive manner. This helps to reduce unhelpful thoughts leaking into your mind.
The app encourages you to stay where you are and overcome the urge to flee, as I said earlier, fleeing is simply avoidance. It can bring about immediate relief. This relief however, is short lived, it reduces confidence and makes facing that situation again in the future increasingly difficult, thus increasing the likelihood of further panic attacks.
Letting panic fade and sticking with it enables you to face your fears and deal with the situation again. It increases confidence and teaches you that you can deal with panic.
The app we have developed doesn't cure your attacks but it can help to reduce their duration and has helped many people already as you can see from just some of the reviews we have received:
For me, the attacks started when I was 18 and they terrified me; I thought I was dying. I couldn't breathe, my vision went, I had chest pains, pins and needles and my heart was racing at more than 120 beats a minute. These attacks became so severe and occurred so often I lost 2 stone in weight. I was in such a state of permanent anxiety I couldn't eat. I was afraid to go out in case they happened in public. I felt I was in real danger of passing out and I was worried that I would make a fool of myself in some way or that I would come to some harm during one. I slept a great deal through the sheer exhaustion that would hit after each panic attack and spent weeks being unable to function at all. As I also suffered with health anxiety the one fed the other so this was a very bad time
For several decades I had many episodes like this; clusters of panic attacks over several months. Then I would improve slowly and eventually have periods of time without any attacks, sometimes these periods lasted 2 or 3 years, but then the attacks would start again. Some clusters came out of the blue, for no reason that I could fathom, others occurred at periods of great stress in my life. There was no real pattern and I felt utterly at the mercy of something over which I had no control. For years I struggled to get to the bottom of what was causing them and find ways to help treat them but never really found anything that was 100% effective. Medication helped a little, though the one that did most to help me is one that got a really bad press because of the side effects, including withdrawal effects. I have to say that I didn't have significant effects when taking it, but I did have some and, more importantly, I didn't want to spend most of my life on tablets so I came off them.
I rarely get panic attacks now. Having said that, a severe one that took me by surprise a couple of years ago, and a few minor ones last year, reminded me that I am not completely immune. I don't know why they are so few and far between now; possibly because I am aware of what happens to the body when they do happen and so have been able to nip them in the bud before they really take hold. When I first suffered from them there was very little in the public domain and my doctors didn't seem to know much about them. No one ever sat me down and told me what was happening during an attack. It was years before I understood about the fight/flight response and I was helped enormously when I met my partner, Anna, who is a mental health nurse. Don't get me wrong she never 'treated' me, she just helped me to understand what was happening. Once I did understand it it helped to limit the duration of the attacks and this seemed to help to prevent them also. I could rationalise what was happening and it made me realise that I was not dying, this helped with the health anxiety which in turn reduced the number of panic attacks and so on. It also helped that she was around to remind me that I wasn't going to die. This is great for me but I will never forget how these awful attacks used to terrify me, make my life a misery for months on end and prevent me from leaving my home. The impact on my life as a whole and the restrictions this placed on me became part of the thinking behind the development of an app.
During a panic attack many people feel self conscious and worried that people are looking at them. This can add to the stress and sometimes make the attacks last longer and be more severe. As you get worse it becomes more apparent to others that something is wrong, a red face, rapid breathing and sweating are just some of the more obvious symptoms. When that happens many suffererers tend to abandon whatever they are doing and rush home. Once home they can often feel a little safer and that, combined with the fact that the attack has probably run its course by now anyway, means these severe panic attacks become associated with being away from home. This often discourages people from going out again and creates a vicious circle. The less you go out the more you fear that going out will trigger a panic attack and the stress of that means you are more likely to have one.
Current thinking centres on self help and I know from my own experience how effective that is. A lot of this work is focussed on getting people to understand what is happening to them and to take steps to make small changes. There is a lot of reading material about that helps people to understand and they can refer to it when they need reassurance. The problem with that of course is that you cannot take self help books around you everywhere you go. Well I guess you can but they are not exactly discreet are they? Having to flick through the pages of a book, or flourish a sheaf of papers is something that may well draw attention and that is the last thing we sufferers want. A mobile phone however, is very different. We are all very used to seeing people with their noses buried in their phones. Reading something on the internet or even reading a book on your smartphone is quite easy to do discreetly. So the idea of our iPhone app was born.
The anxiety management principles used within the Beat Panic app are based on those used in Cognitive Behaviour Therapy:
To understand and normalise the physical symptoms
To identify and challenge negative thinking
To overcome the urge to flee; to learn to deal with the panic wherever it occurs
The app starts with calm soothing breaths to help you regulate your respiration, the screen breathes with you. This is designed to reduce hyperventilation and slow down the heart rate. This can bring down the adrenaline surge and release tension.
The subsequent text normalises your feelings and assists you in gaining control by focussing on the present and not what you fear may happen. It directs you away from negative/catastrophic thinking.
In a state of panic we fear something terrible is going to happen and dwell on the fear of "what if..." Focussing on the text is a form of distraction, keeping you in the here and now, telling you that you can deal with it. The aim is to remember what is really happening and guide you through the panic. It directs you to identify a calm word that you can say to yourself in a repetitive manner. This helps to reduce unhelpful thoughts leaking into your mind.
The app encourages you to stay where you are and overcome the urge to flee, as I said earlier, fleeing is simply avoidance. It can bring about immediate relief. This relief however, is short lived, it reduces confidence and makes facing that situation again in the future increasingly difficult, thus increasing the likelihood of further panic attacks.
Letting panic fade and sticking with it enables you to face your fears and deal with the situation again. It increases confidence and teaches you that you can deal with panic.
The app we have developed doesn't cure your attacks but it can help to reduce their duration and has helped many people already as you can see from just some of the reviews we have received:
Thank you
I've just gone from heart pounding and hyperventilating to normal in one play of the app . It's very helpful having all the things you should be thinking ti calm down in front if you as you can't think straight when you realise the panic is gaining momentum
You should add a review link to the app by the start over button at the end though so people dont have to search to review you ( although I did because this app rocks ! )
You should add a review link to the app by the start over button at the end though so people dont have to search to review you ( although I did because this app rocks ! )
Original and very good
I love this idea. I suffer from anxiety and panic attacks and downloaded this app about 4 weeks ago. I have used it several times - it gives you something to focus on and is encouraging and positive, it helps me to shorten the attack when I have one. It doesn't cure you or anything but its a very valuable tool to help. You can tell it is written by a panic sufferer, it really speaks to me with comforting phrases. Thank you!
You saved my life
This app is saving my life from fearing. Thank you so much.
There are many more reviews from people who have found our app helpful. If you do want to download it just search for Beat Panic on the app store, or you can find it by copying and pasting this link:
https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/beat-panic/id452656397?mt=8
If it helps anyone to chat about their attacks or you would like more information about the app then please visit our Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/beatpaniciphoneapp
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